CREATION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE SUBJECT "GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE" IN THE STUDY PROGRAMS OF THE FIELD OF LANDSCAPE ENGINEERING

The submitted contribution is focused on the creation and implementation of the subject "Green Infrastructure" in the study programs of the field of study Landscape Engineering. Green infrastructure is a complex system of natural territories that include terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, elements, areas, and systems of greenery in the settlement and in the country. Its importance results from the sustainable use of natural potential and the provided ecosystem services for society. It is a multifunctional and durable system that offers a range of nature-based solutions to current problems and needs, for example with climate change and its consequences

Dendrometric evaluation of Helianthus annuus under water deficit conditions

Drought is characterised as a recurring climatic phenomenon with prolonged duration, affecting land through below-average rainfall and often accompanied by high temperatures. When the available water falls below the optimum level, water deficit or water stress arises, disrupting normal plant processes. This condition poses challenges for plant growth and development as it hampers the internal water transport, induces stomatal closure, and limits access to photosynthetic resources. The study employed the annual sunflower as the experimental plant. The plants were cultivated in a controlled environment with a temperature ranging from 20 to 25°C and a humidity level of 55 to 60%, supplemented by MARS HYDRO artificial LED lighting set to a 12-h photoperiod. Radial changes in the plant stems were monitored using a DD-S type dendrometric sensor to measure radial fluctuations. The collected data were recorded in a dendrometric data logger DL 18. Data collection occurred at hourly intervals from February 20 to March 9, 2023. The nine plants were divided into three groups, each comprising three plants. All plants from groups 1 and 2 received irrigation at one-day intervals (group 1 - 80 cm3 per plant, group 2 - 40 cm3 per plant) and group 3 was not irrigated. Based on these findings, visible water stress was evident in the plants under experimental conditions. Consequently, continuous monitoring throughout the growing season will be essential to adjust the irrigation rate to meet the requirements of the plants

STRATEGIES AND METHODS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF STUDENT\u27S MOTIVATION

The submitted contribution examines the use of methods of developing students\u27 motivation in the educational process at FHLE SUA in Nitra. Its aim was on the basis of educational research to identify and to compare the opinions of teachers and students on use and their importance in the educational process. The basic package included students of study program Landscape Engineering and teachers, who are providing education of core of this program. Teachers and students confirmed in the survey that they are being used to teach various methods of developing motivation. Significant differences between opinions of teachers and students were seen on the utilization of application examples from a practice and on a degree of attractiveness of lectures and exercises. Most students are hard up for praise and feel a primacy of the teachers. Based on the analysis of the survey results, we formulated advices to enhance their motivation, which should lead to improve of achievements

EDUCATION IN SLOVAKIA IN THE FIELD OF ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION WITH AN EMPHASIS ON GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE

Education in Slovakia, focused on environmental education with an emphasis on green infrastructure, is a manifestation of our lifestyle and way of existence. It is a reflection of our emphasis on values and morals. Training and education in this area lag far behind current needs. A citizen should be civilized enough to know what is suitable for the environment. Basic environmental knowledge of 21st century knowledge and environmental behavior is developed in relation to existing European countries

Water Regime Monitoring of the Royal Walnut (<i>Juglans regia</i> L.) Using Sap Flow and Dendrometric Measurements

Changes in the distribution of annual rainfall totals, together with the increase in temperature over the last 40 years, are causing more frequent periods of drought, and plants are more often exposed to water stress. The aim of this study was to monitor the effect of different water regimes (irrigated and non-irrigated) of individuals of walnut tree (Juglans regia L.) in a private orchard located in the West of Slovakia. Our research was focused on dendrometric and sap flow measurements in the period from 28 March to 2 June 2019. The results showed differences in the sap flow of walnut trees during the budbreak period: when trees were irrigated, sap flow in the diurnal cycle was around 130 g·h−1 (20.48%), higher than in the non-irrigated treatment. Dendrometric differences between the irrigated and non-irrigated treatments were not significant. The sap flow data in the flowering period of the irrigated variant were slightly higher at 150 g·h−1 (35.62%) than non-irrigated. Dendrometric differences were more significant when the difference between the variants was more than 1.5 mm. Continuation of this research and analysis of the data obtained in the coming years will allow us to evaluate the effects of the environment on fruit trees in the long term

Monitoring of the Dendrometric Changes Influenced by Soil Water Content

Drought is generally associated with the persistence of low precipitation amount, decreased soil moisture and water availability relative to the normal levels in a designated area. The effects of drought, range from the morphological to molecular levels, and are evident at all phenological stages of the plant growth, at whatever stage the water deficit occurs. Determination of the surface water demands for irrigation purposes comes out from the assumption of hydrologic processes stationarity. This paper shows our research prerequisite that water stress participates in an important part on the volume changes of over ground parts, which is predictive for the irrigation demand. Malus domestica var. Yellow Transparent was chosen for the measurement of volume changes of the surface plant parts. Our measurements were realised by the Diameter dendrometer small (DD-S) from 24.08. - 13.09.2017. One tree was irrigated by the dose of 50 mm. We compared the dendrometric changes to soil moisture and rainfall on both irrigated and non-irrigated trees. The experiment showed the differences between the irrigated apple tree (the diameters of the branches fluctuated between 11.9 and 12.1 mm) and the non-irrigated apple tree (the diameter of the branches increased after three-day rain from 8.35 to 8.61 mm), in order to determine the water stress of plants based on dendrometric changes and optimize irrigation during the drought period

Design of Hardware and Software Equipment for Monitoring Selected Operating Parameters of the Irrigator

The aim of this paper was to design a device for monitoring the work of irrigation technology (in our case, irrigation by sprinkler). Two devices for monitoring selected irrigation operating parameters for two hose reel irrigation machines were designed. During the monitored period of connection of the equipment to the sprinkler, 15 irrigation doses were carried out for both sprinklers. Irrigation operating characteristics working pressure, hose reel speed and selected weather conditions temperature and humidity were monitored. When evaluating the results, we proved the need to monitor the operation of the sprinkler not only by the coefficient of variation Cv, but also by introducing the coefficient of non-uniformity a. The results obtained indicate variability with respect to a particular irrigation dose and the applicable assessment method. The results were reviewed by one-way ANOVA analysis where observed coefficients and irrigation dose were considered as dependence factors. The results indicate a statistically significant impact of the applied quality coefficient of work and thus the impact of a particular device (p Fcrit = 2.77). When evaluating the effect of the included irrigation dose, we also showed a statistically significant effect in both facilities (p F = 1.92). By checking the operation of the hose reel irrigation machine, we managed to successfully apply the proposed classifications, which also perform the function of fault prediction. The proposed facilities show that proper plant operation and timely response can help create more efficient and sustainable irrigation services, not only saving water but also reducing costs for the owner

Improvement of soil health and nutrient transformations under balanced fertilization with integrated nutrient management in a rice-wheat system in Indo-Gangetic Plains – A 34-year Research outcomes

The impact of integrated nutrient management seems crucial for the sustainability of crop production as revealed by studies on long-term experiments. It provided the opportunity to monitor long-term variations in crop yields and associated factors. The impacts of various nutrient management strategies on yields and soil attributes in a rice-wheat system have been researched under a long-term experiment that has been running since 1983 at Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana. Further, a positive correlation has been observed between crop yields and soil properties such as soil organic carbon (SOC), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K) and zinc (Zn). The negative correlation with K could be attributed to soil becoming deficient in K and necessitating the application of potassium fertilizer. The treatments receiving organic manures (green manure, farmyard manure and wheat cut straw) showed a better population of soil microorganisms in comparison to the treatments receiving chemical fertilizers, thereby proving as precursors of sustaining soil health. The best soil characteristics (water-soluble aggregates, exchangeable and non-exchangeable K, fixed and total K) after rice and wheat harvesting were found where 50 % of the recommended NPK was supplemented with farmyard manure (FYM). The build-up of trace elements particularly for Fe and Zn was also noticed. In crystalline Fe oxide bound fraction (CFeOX), Fe increased between 717.1 and 984.8 mg kg−1, while Zn increased between 2.64 and 3.08 mg kg−1. Furthermore, amorphous iron oxide (AFeOX), CFeOX, carbonate (CARB), organic matter (OM) bound and exchangeable (EXCH) Fe and Zn were higher in treatments where organic manures were supplemented with 50 and 25 % N. Farmyard manure showed an incremental trend, followed by wheat cut straw and green manure (GM). The incremental trend in soil quality was noticed with FYM followed by wheat cut straw and GM